NEW YORK -- Legal proceedings against Thomas Lubanga Dyilo now taking place before the new International Criminal Court offer some hope that a serious kind of crime will be effectively punished and deterred.
Lubanga Dyilo led a Congolese militia group responsible for a wide range of criminal activities, among them the forced recruitment of children, including girls, as soldiers.
More and more girls are becoming unwilling warriors or sex partners for soldiers throughout the world. It is estimated that, between 1990 and 2003, girls as young as 13 served in military and paramilitary groups in 55 countries and participated in armed conflict in 38 of those countries. At present, more than 120,000 girls participate in armed conflicts worldwide.